MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR

I would like to end the year by sharing this poem by Micahel Josephson entitled WHAT WILL MATTER.

Ready or not, some day it will come to an end.
There will be no more sunrises, no minutes, hours or days.
All the things you collected, whether treasured or forgotten, will pass to someone else.
Your wealth, fame and temporal power will shrivel to irrelevance.
It will not matter what you owned or what you were owed.
Your grudges, resentments, frustrations and jealousies will finally dissappear.
See too, your hopes, ambitions, plans and to do lists will expire.
The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade away.
It won't matter where you came from or what side of the tracks you live on at the end.
It won't matter wheter you were beautiful or brilliant.
Even your gener and skin color will be irrelevant.
So what will matter. How will the value of your days be measured?
What will matter is not what you borught but what you built, not what you got but what you gave.
what will matter is not your success but your significance.
What will matter is not what you learned but what you taught.
What will matter is every act of integrity, compassion, courage or sacrifice that enriched, empowered or encouraged others to emulate your example.
What will matter is not your competence but your character.
What will matter is not how many people you knew, but how many will feel a lasting loss when you are gone.
What will matter is not your memories but the memories of those who loved you.
What will matter is how long you will be remembered, by whom and for what.

Living a life that matters does not happen by accident.
It is not a matter of circumstances but of choice.
Choose to live a life that matters.
And when it comes to a life that matters, I can't think of a better tribute than for it to be said:

This man or woman was a person of integrity.

but it all comes down to the choices we make. As someone aptly observed "If you have integrity, nothing else matters; if you don't have integrity, nothing else matters!"

The question I leave you to ponder is: How much does it matter to each and every one of you?

BLESSINGS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!

Living Smart's new season and the British Virgin Islands

What does Living Smart's new season have to do with the British Virgin Islands? Well, I had to take a vacation so I can prepare for a new challenging, fabulous, and interesting season. I am not much of a sailor but I have friends who are and I am very lucky every now and then they think of me and invite me to come along and wash the dishes and entertain (I can't cook or sail so I have to do something!) I had been to the British Virgin Islands once before and I must say they are my favorite in the Caribbean. First of all, there are not that many people there, only about 30,000 in all the islands. The British Virgin Islands consist of the main islands of Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Anegada and Jost Van Dyke, along with over fifty other smaller islands and cays. Approximately fifteen of the islands are inhabited. I love deserted islands so we visited a few. Somehow I feel like I am soon to be cast on survivor or lost. (That didn't happen)
It is amazing to live in paradise, but the locals tell me they don't see it that way. As soon as they have a few days off they want to get out of the islands! As the saying goes, it is always greener on the other side.
Many have asked me aren't you worried about the economic situation, how can you spend money on a vacation? the answer is yes I am worried and the more reason I need a vacation! However, somehow the fear and anxiety I feel has led me to try and enjoy life MORE not LESS. I am being responsible with my spending but somehow I find I must live life to the fullest now because I don't know what tomorrow will bring, which brings me to LIVING SMART.
We are taping our fifth season in January. We are also taping a town forum on Houston's growth and its challenges, a new season of Houston 8, a weekly issue driven show hosted by Ernie and Latina Voices which I am hosting with Minerva Perez and Sofia Adrogue. There is a lot going on in January and I am truly excited about the new season of Living Smart because I feel all the guests can help us in so many ways, especially while we go through the stress of uncertainty about the future. Here are my guests and topics.

501 Jeff Yeager (ultimate cheapskate) (Living Smart by surviving in tough economic times)
502 Ana Maria Martinez (Opera star) (Living Smart by appreciating the value of music)
503 501 Peter Bishop PhD ( Futurist) (Living Smart by preparing what is in store in the future)
504 Daryl Koehn PhD (Ethicist) (Living Smart by engaging making smart decisions and living a good life)
505 Dr. Bruce Perry M.D. (Child Development specialist) Living Smart by emphasising the importance of human connections )
506 Elizabeth Vallette (Microfinance advocate) (Living Smart by tackling poverty and empowering women )
507 David Thomas (Integrity expert)( Living Smart by living with integrity)
508 Dr. Mae Jemison M.D. (former Astronaut, entrepreneur) (Living Smart by motivating science and technology literacy)
509 Sr. Roselle Haas (Life Educator) (Living Smart by dealing effectively with prickly people)
510 Marilyn Mcnight (Mediator) (Living Smart through conflict resolution)
511 Mark Robinson (Green consultant) (Living Smart by living green)
512 Cassandra Dhanke (Civility expert) (Living Smart by engaging in civility)
513 Deborah Fry (Parenting expert) (Living smart by proper parenting)

As you can see we are tackling the economy, poverty, ethics, integrity, civility, conflict resolution, life issues, parenting and living green. I wanted this season to be truly relevant to what we are experiencing as a nation. I want us to feel hope that things will get better and that there are so many things we can do to create a better reality for ourselves. The series will not be airing until March or April of next year, but I can assure you it will be worth the wait.
In the mean time, have a wonderful holiday and don't stress about buying "stuff" Maybe make an effort to spend more time with your friends and loved ones instead of buying expensive gifts we don't need. The fact is we need each other..now more than ever. Happy Holidays!